Page 71 of Taste of Forever
“Oh my God, is that—” Tavia started.
“Heather?!” Amy finished.
“Keep your voices down,” I groused. “Wait, you both know her?”
“She was in Sapien for a few days. She stumbled in from the human world.” Amy followed me first, with Tavia on her heels.
“When was this?” I pushed open the door with my shoulder, then Tavia darted around and slipped past us to hold it open. “Thanks.”
“Sure. And this was months ago.” She looked at her friend. “Before Amy became a brusang. Me and Cy weren’t even officially mated yet. I met her when he took me back to visit.”
“Huh.” I took each step down the stairs slowly, wishing for the first time that we had an elevator to the basement level. “I had no idea she was in Sapien.”
“She was totally in the dark about vampires existing,” Amy said, still behind me.
“’Til she saw Cy with her own eyes,” Tavia added wryly, a few steps ahead of me on the stairs. “Pretty hard to deny at that point.”
“Of course Cy would be the first vampire she encounters and not me,” I huffed.
Tavia whipped around once she hit the floor, her gray eyes wide. “Oh my God, it just hit me.Heatheris the blood mate everyone’s talking about? The one you tasted before knowing anything about her?”
“Yes, Tav. It’s very exciting. Can youpleasekeep your voice down?”
“Shit, sorry,” she whispered. “It’s just…wow. So uncanny that we’re all getting mated to you guys, right?”
“Straight out of a romance novel,” Amy teased in a singsong voice, skipping past me to join Tavia.
“Oh hush, you.” Tavia smacked her best friend playfully, then twirled around to face me. “Want me to get the door, Laith? So you don’t have to let go of her.”
“Yeah, thanks. Keys are in my left pocket.”
“Do you have stuff in your place for her?” Amy asked. “She’ll need water and juice for sure. Plus snacks and blankets.”
“Toiletries too,” added Tavia, maneuvering around Heather’s feet to fish my keys out of my jacket pocket. “And spare clothes. Me and Bea will loan some of our stuff, but she’ll probably want some of her own soap, moisturizer, shampoo, and conditioner at very least. Oh, and a hairbrush, and scrunchies, just in case she wants her hair out of the way. And a toothbrush.”
My shoulders sagged, which had nothing to do with Heather’s slight weight in my arms. “I don’t have any of that stuff,” I admitted. “I didn’t expect to bring her home until…”Until she finally ditched her boyfriend and fell in love with me.
“Leave it to me,” Amy said. “I can get everything she needs right now. You good, Tav?”
“Yep.” Tavia unlocked my door and held it open, standing aside to let me and Heather through.
“Here we go, Science Barbie.” The lights turned on automatically as I entered my bedroom, thankfully staying low and dimmed.
“Here.” Tavia followed us in and pulled down my sheets and comforter, then fluffed up my pillows.
“Thanks.” I lowered Heather down carefully and pulled the covers up to her chest. Then and only then, did I step back and allow myself to take a huge sighing breath.
“She’ll be alright.” Tavia pinned me with a hard look as she headed for the bedroom door. “Don’t pull a Cy and blame yourself for this. You didn’t hurt her, Laith.”
“I know, but I just…I don’t get why she would come here during the day. She even works the night shift. She’s nocturnal already.”
“She made a mistake, and she’s lucky that you found her.”
“If I had just warned her against?—“
“Nope, don’t go there.”
I could see why Tavia had no problem standing up to Amy’s bullies when they were growing up. She stared me down from the doorway and I knew she would not give me any room to argue.
